Comments: NASCAR Picks for Daytona

For the third time this year drivers will have to deal with the chaos that comes with restrictor plate racing when the Cup Series visits Daytona International Speedway Saturday night for the Coke Zero 400. The summer event at the track may not have the same aura surrounding it as the season-opening Daytona 500, but that doesn't mean the wrecks aren't just as big and the outcome just as unpredictable. Plain and simple, this weekend's race is one of the few on the schedule that almost every driver believes they can win and one of the few races that every driver knows could end with them being involved in a violent, multi-car wreck.

For fantasy owners, there aren't many things as frustrating as a trip to a restrictor plate track. One bobble or ill-timed tap by any driver on any lap can wipe out a dozen or more cars in the matter of seconds. There really isn't a safe spot on the track or safe strategy that a driver can use to survive and avoid the carnage, and there isn't a safe strategy for fantasy owners either. That being said, I always recommend minimizing the potential damage as much as possible depending on the format. In any fantasy league that limits the number of times a driver can be used or in leagues where a different driver has to be used every week, this is one of the races to rely on the lesser-known, sleeper drivers in the series. For one, it prevents a wasted start from a big name if they happen to get caught up in a wreck. Meanwhile, the race is also one of the best chances to score a solid finish out of some of the bottom feeders in the series.